SiteWatch® Instant Card Clearing (ICC)
A safe and secure way to clear credit cards in less than two seconds, saving your customers time and encouraging them to charge purchases. This in turn is likely to increase your dollars per vehicle, since customers tend to spend more when they pay with credit cards.What is SiteWatch Instant Card Clearing, and why does it clear credit card transactions so quickly?
ICC is a SiteWatch module that uses advanced Internet technology to clear credit card transactions. Because ICC maintains a constant connection to our authorized credit card clearing company (Mercury Payment Systems), it transmits card transactions instantly for approval. In fact, ICC can complete card transactions in less than two seconds! By comparison, it took up to 20 seconds when a customer paid with a credit card in the past, because the modem had to connect to a telephone line, and then dial a phone number before it could start communicating with another modem at the other end. ICC saves up to 18 seconds per transaction, which really adds up quickly when you process a lot of credit cards. So, your entire line moves faster.
How do I know the information being transmitted over the Internet is secure?
The payment card industry has created a set of safeguard measures known as the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard, which encrypt the transaction information that’s transmitted over the Internet to protect against hacking. The processor that SiteWatch uses, Mercury Payment Systems, adheres to these very high standards. This ensures that your customers’ data is secure and protected.
What happens if my Internet goes down? Can I still clear credit cards?
Connections to the Internet are more reliable than ever, so interruptions in service are very uncommon. However, Internet connections can still fail on occasion. If this happens, you can, if you choose, use the Local Approval Mode option to keep your ICC up and accepting credit cards when your Internet connection goes down. This feature allows you to approve the transaction and store the customer’s credit card information. When the Internet connection is restored, SiteWatch automatically sends the sale to Mercury Payment Systems for processing.
If I use the Local Approval Mode I don’t know if the card I just approved is valid, correct?
True - but the odds of a stolen or fraudulent credit card being used for a relatively small purchase like a carwash are low, so most operators feel comfortable accepting cards under these circumstances. The important thing is that by storing the customer’s credit card information and sending it through automatically without requiring any action on your part, ICC allows you to continue accepting cards without spending time trying to sort through paperwork and manually resending the transactions for approval.
You mention that the Local Approval Mode is an option – so I don’t have to use it?
That is correct. You can elect to have ICC not clear credit cards for those brief periods when your Internet connection is down. You can also set parameters that will automatically turn off the Local Approval Mode option after it has approved transactions worth a specified dollar amount. For example, you can have the Local Approval Mode automatically turn on if the Internet goes down, but then automatically shut off after it’s cleared $500. Once this happens, ICC will stop processing credit cards until the Internet connection is restored.
Why can’t I use my own bank or credit card processor instead of Mercury Payment Systems with ICC?
When DRB Systems designed Instant Card Clearing, we looked for the best technology available to provide speed and security. Mercury Payment Systems provided these features in a very stable, reliable and user-friendly package. As our technology advanced, it was developed to work with Mercury Payment Systems. It would be very difficult to have this level of compatibility with another processor. Because we have so many customers (about 700 at last count) using Mercury Payment Systems, they give you a good pre-negotiated rate as well as great service. Mercury Payment Systems has a great deal of experience serving major clients in a variety of industries, so we know we are working with a company that can be counted on by DRB Systems and its customers.
What kind of reporting will SiteWatch provide me on my credit card sales?
Reporting is a strong point in SiteWatch. You can see the sales by credit card type broken out on your daily sales report. A sale viewer shows details of every credit card sale. The Site Operations Report shows daily credit card activity, a Bank Deposits Report helps you match deposits on your bank statement, and a Host Exceptions Report will show you differences (and there shouldn’t be any!) between credit card sales in SiteWatch versus what Mercury shows. Of course, Mercury Payment Systems has their own list of summary and detail reports that are available online to you.
Will ICC work to clear credit cards on all my SiteWatch terminals?
Yes – ICC will clear credit cards instantly from your SiteWatch Touchscreen Cash Register, your hand-held Portable Touchscreen Terminal (PTT), your Keypad Terminal, and your Xpress Pay Terminal® (XPT) self-pay station.Why is it worth it for me to invest in ICC?
The best two things about Instant Card Clearing are its speed and reliability. When you are trying to process sales quickly on your busy days, you want to move customers through quickly. The faster they move, the more cars you can process and the more money you make. Plus, faster credit card clearing promotes higher credit card usage, which can lead to higher sales. In one published study we did at a carwash in Michigan, customers spent 36% more when using a credit card. The increased dollars per car you get from encouraging customers to use credit cards will probably pay for your investment in ICC.
